


A Mother's Love

by AzuraJae



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Mother-Son Relationship, Motherly love, Other, Post-Kingdom Hearts II, Pre-Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-08
Updated: 2015-09-08
Packaged: 2018-04-19 18:51:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4757159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AzuraJae/pseuds/AzuraJae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sora is hesitant to go home and fears what his mother might think of him leaving her behind for such a long time, but soon he realizes that he might have underestimated a mother’s love.</p><p>Sora finally came home for dinner, or was it lunch? :D</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Mother's Welcome

**Author's Note:**

> I was compelled to write this when I reading into Destiny Islands and I read about Sora's mom. I know Sora has a mom AND a dad (I think it was mentioned by Riku once to Terra in BBS), but I wanted to make this more about motherly love, so Sora's dad is not in here, but it's explained why. This is Post-KH2, soon after Sora and Riku come shooting out of the sky. Another thing you might want to know is that I took a LOT of inspiration from Leafie: A Hen into the Wild, which is probably one of the most heart-breaking movies I have ever seen. Sora's mom is based a lot on Leafie, who I think is the fictional moms ever. If you haven't seen this movie, I HEAVILY recommend it and I recommend watching the Sub version because the English Dub brushes over a few things the original had. I also recommend that you bring a couple tissues because you're going to definitely cry a whole lot. I actually cried a bit when I wrote this, or it could be that I'm very sensitive |D Anyways, enjoy the story!

Sora gazed out onto the ocean as the sun began to slowly rise into the sky. Just a few moments earlier, he had said a fond farewell to his two good friends, Donald Duck and Goofy, and their beloved King Mickey. He now sat reminiscing with his other two good friends, Kairi and Riku. It felt so good to be home again. To rest his tired muscles; it was hard to believe it was finally over. He and his friends did it. He closed his eyes and leaned back a little on his hands, letting the cool sand seep in between his fingers. Sora recounted the sleepless nights he had in other worlds. At that time, he wondered if he would ever get a night where he would just be allowed to rest and just hang out instead of keeping one eye open to watch of potential enemies that were eager to ruin his night.

It felt like a dream- one that’s too good to be true. He wondered if he was dreaming and Kairi had offered to punch him to see if it woke him up. The teen had politely declined Kairi’s generous offer and had decided that even if this was a dream, he would enjoy it to the fullest. However, as he chatted with his two good friends about what had happened, a lingering thought was ruminating at the back of his heart. If he was home, that meant his family was too. Well, his family was his mom. A small bubble of worry appeared at the back of his mind. He frowned to himself, unaware that Riku and Kairi were standing up and talking to him. What if his mother didn’t welcome him? Was she mad at him for leaving for almost two years now? A new feeling of fear flooded into his heart and he became unusually anxious.

“Sora? Sora!” It took a few more tries from Kairi to snap the brunette out of his thoughts. She was waving a hand in front of his face and he brushed it away.

Sora looked up at his two friends, who were now gazing at him worriedly. “What? Oh, sorry. I was just thinking; what were you saying?” Sora hoped they didn’t press for details. Unfortunately, they did.

“What are you thinking about?” Kairi asked gently, taking a few steps closer. She squatted down and put her hand on his shoulder. Sora chewed the inside of his cheek.

“Oh about Xemnas. I was wondering if he was dead for good.” he lied. “I mean, it’d be really bad if he somehow wasn’t dead.” Sora hoped his lie would pull through, but his friends were having none of that.

“You’re a terrible liar, you know, Sora?” told Riku, putting a hand to his head. “Just make it easier for all of us and just tell us what’s wrong. The only way Xemnas coming back is if we somehow go back in time.”

Sora gave a wry laugh. Of course his friends would tear through his act and demand what was wrong. He licked his lips, trying to delay speaking, but Kairi gave him an unimpressed look when he locked eyes with her. The brunette pursed his lips momentarily.

“Just worried about my mom.” Sora informed his friends with a dry cough.

“Is she sick?” Riku inquired, although the question who was more for Kairi.

Since Kairi was the only one who has been back on Destiny Islands in the last two years and knew the welfare of their parents. Kairi looked at Riku, her face scrunched up before slowly shaking her head.

“No, she was healthy the last time I saw her.” Kairi replied slowly. She looked at Sora. Then a light of understanding entered her eyes. “You’re worried about seeing her, aren’t you?”

“I couldn’t hide it from you for long huh?” Sora said wryly. Then he gave a hefty sigh. “Yeah, I’m scared of what she’ll think of me.” he admitted.

“Sora!” Kairi smiled lightly and put a hand over her hand. She chuckled. “Don’t be silly! I know she really misses you.” She glanced at Riku. “I know Riku’s parents did and I know your mom did too.”

“But I just up and left!” Sora countered bitterly, the pain constricting his voice. “And it’s not just for a week or something. It’s for two whole years!” Sora blinked hurriedly, trying to blink the tears out of his eyes. “She’s been all alone for two years. How could I do that to her, especially after my dad…” Sora trailed off.

There was a lull in the conversation. Kairi looked pulled her hand around Sora’s neck, pulling him close in a one-armed hug. Then she looked up at Riku, who seemed to be deep in thought. She was about to ask him to talk some sense into Sora, but he beat her to it. Riku stood in front of Sora, kneeling down and grabbing him by the shoulders. The brunette looked up at Riku with worried eyes.

“What exactly is in your head?” Riku questioned firmly, causing Sora to look up at him. “She’s your mom. She probably misses you more than anything. What happened back then, it wasn’t your fault. If anything it was mine.” Riku paused when he felt his friends sympathetic looks. “You’re underestimating your mother.”

“But…” Sora’s voice was very small.

“This is your mother we’re talking about.” Riku interrupted his friend. “If her son has the capability to forgive me, someone who almost killed him and caused him so much pain, then what of the mother?” The silver-haired teen eyes softened. “Those traits of yours have to come from somewhere, Sora.”

“You always worry too much.” Kairi added softly. She put her head against Sora’s head. “All that’ll do is give you grey hairs ahead of time.”

A beat of silence. A seagull screeched noisily overhead.

“What about you guys?” Sora asked quietly after a while.

“We’re going home too.” Riku said, relaxing his grip. “If you had been listening earlier, lazy bum, you would’ve heard us telling you.”

Sora blinked. “Oh.” Then he frowned and looked at his hands. “It doesn’t feel like enough.”

“Seeing you guys again is the best gift you can give them.” Kairi assured, letting go of Sora. She was addressing Riku this time too. “They still talk about you, all the time.” The red-haired girl nodded her head in remembrance. “They even ask me sometimes if I know where you guys are.”

“What did you tell them?” It was Riku who asked this time, much to Sora’s surprise.

“That you’ll be home soon.” Kairi then gave a laugh. “If two years counts as ‘soon’.” Then she leaned over, hugging her two best friends close. It was surreal to be talking with them again. “It’s been too long.”

“Yeah.” Sora nodded. Riku merely smiled.

“Let’s go home, I’m sure our parents are waiting for us.” The silver-haired teen said, pulling out of the hug. Then he looked towards the sky. “They probably saw us flying down from the sky.”

“Those ‘meteors’ were hard to miss.” Kairi giggled. “We better go to the mainland to make sure no one gets an aneurism.”

The three of them laughed together. It felt so good to be home. There was no place like home after all. That’s where all the memories are. As his laughter died down, he noticed a brightly colored wonder out of the corner of his eye. He looked towards it, seeing a clump of simply gorgeous island flowers. It’s petals were white, adorned with light orange-pink tips as it rose it’s head proudly towards the sky. He turned to his friends, who were looking questionably at him.

“I have something to do first.”

-~*~-

_Chop. Chop. Chop._

Cutting vegetables were boring, or that’s what this particular woman thought. As she brought the knife down repeatedly onto the cutting board, she couldn’t help notice how horribly quiet it was. So quiet. The sound of the knife and the cutting board echoed around her. It was normal sound in a common household, but the the woman it was just a silent reminder of what used to be. The petite woman had neglected to turn on the lights, instead using the sun that filtered in through the glass patio doors to her left. Turning on lights made the house seem much more lively than it really is. It was really not.

Has it really been eight years since her husband died? Has it really been two years since she had seen _him_? She wondered to herself. She remembered a time where she was doing the exact same thing, chopping vegetables for lunch-or dinner-, but there would be a small child pestering her or a lovely husband helping her out. There used to be more people in this house, but...they both disappeared, one by one. And when they disappeared, a part of her disappeared too.

She stopped briefly to brush a strand of brown hair out of her face. She wasn’t that _old_ yet, right? Why then, did she have to suffer the curse that all humans carried: Being alone. The woman took a deep breath as she sped up her chopping speed. There was no point cutting up this much vegetables when no one, but her is going to eat it. Sighing resignedly, she decided she would give this food to the Folk’s Home down the street. The elderly were always ready to eat her excessive amount of cooking.

_Knock. Knock._

Someone was knocking on her glass patio door. The sound caused her focus to be momentarily swayed. The palm of her hand had the unfortunate displacement of being under the knife. As she retracted her hand to her chest, seething quietly to herself. She was about to scold whoever was disturbing her cooking when a voice cut through all intentions to pull through with the idea. She froze in place, her face looking absently at the wound on her hand. A voice! _The_ voice! The one that she had so longed to hear for the past two years. The voice absorbed all ideas of bursting out into anger almost as instantly as the idea appeared. It was replaced with a shocking hope and realization that made her wonder if it was just a figment of her imagination.

“Mom!”

It was real. The woman turned around to see a teenage boy step half-way through the glass doors. Upon catching her gaze, the young teen stop in his tracks. They locked eyes and for a moment, they just stared each other down. The young brunette hesitantly took a step back and that’s all it took for the woman to come rushing towards him. A feeling of sweet relief encased her as she clutched him close. It wasn't a dream.

“Mom?” the teen squeaked out as he was encased in a bone-crushing hug. His arms hung weakly by his side as he tried to figure out what to say or do.

“...Sora, darling…” The woman said quietly, her voice muffled as she buried her face on his shoulder. The name almost sounded foreign to her and it terrified her. “It’s really you right? Sora?”

“I-uh...Mom, I…” Sora stammered. He wasn’t sure what to say. He had this all planned out, but his emotions got the better of him. “Mom, your hand…”

Sora looked down at her, only to be horrified by something he was never worried about.  He was taller than her. Reality hit him like a stone wall and for once, Sora thought he was way too tall. Of course, when he was younger, he always wanted to be taller than Riku, or at least the same height. Considering his friendly rivalry with his best friend, it was to be expected, but he never wanted to be bigger than his own mother. When did he grow taller than her? How long had he really been gone? The thought shattered his heart and all intention to take charge of the situation melted away. For once, he hoped that his mother would baby him.

“Just stay here for a while…” Sora heard his mother murmur to him. She sank down to her knees and Sora willingly allowed himself to be pulled down.

For once in a long time, he didn’t mind his mother smothering him. In fact, the fact that she did was a relief. He let go of the bouquet of flowers, allowing it to sit silently by, and hugged his mom back. He felt like a small child and he wanted to. How so much changed in just two years. So they sat for at least thirty minutes, on the patio. By then, Sora’s sleeve and face were full of snot and tears. His mother was no better, but she had a pretty petite even so.

“Mom, I’m home.” Sora croaked out, rubbing his eyes with one of his hands. His mother caught his hand.

“Don’t rub your eyes.” She chided him lightly. She picked up then end of the apron she was wearing and brought it up to his eyes, wiping them gently. “You’ll hurt them if you do that.” She smiled and put her hands on her lap.

A flash of red caught Sora’s eye. That’s right! His mother cut her hand! He made a grab for his mother’s hand, clasping them gently in his own. He looked down at the cut. It wasn’t that bad, but it was ugly enough for Sora to wince in sympathy. It had mostly dried, but a trickle of blood was now making it’s way down her wrist. It had probably reopened when she wiped his tears. He suddenly felt a bout of guiltiness set in.

“It’s alright, Sora.” She assured him, trying to pull her hand. “It’s just a cut.”

“Cuts...Cuts can get much worse if you don’t treat them.” Sora countered, his voice still raw from crying. He kept a firm grasp on her hand, refusing to let go

“It’s doesn’t matter.” She replied quietly. “All I care about is that you’re home.”

Sora shook his head and instead, he raised one of his hands upwards to the sky. The woman was wondering what he was doing, but before she had the chance to ask, he shouted rather loudly.

“Heal!”

A yellow flower blossomed on top of them before fading away as a green breeze began it’s descent. The mother watched in awe as the green mist swirled around her and her son, giving a feeling of renewment and clarity. A sensation that new and indescribable to her. It felt especially cooling around her injured  hand and she looked down at her hand. Her eyes widened as the cut on her had faded away. She locked eyes with her son, who gave a skittish smile.

“I’ve learned a few things when I was gone.” He told her sheepishly. She nodded slowly, a bit overwhelmed.

The woman lifted up her hand in front of her face. She looked at where the cut used to be, but all that was left was a faint barely discernible scar. She flexed her hand to see if there was any sort of reaction. Maybe a sliver of pain or something, but nothing. It was completely gone. She gave a laugh, startling Sora who was sniffling quietly to himself.

“It seems that you have.” She chuckled. She brought her not-injured hand to his face to brush the brown locks of hair from his face. “It seems that you have.” She repeated to herself, a little quieter.

Sora looked down, lighting brushing his mother’s wrist with his fingertips. “You’re…” She looked at him questionably. “You’re not...mad?” Hesitation was clear fast.

“A little.” She admitted and Sora winced. “I was mad that I couldn’t do anything.” Sora looked into his mother’s eyes anxiously. “But I think after what you just did, I think there’s just something bigger I don’t understand.” She sighed remorsefully. “You’re not the same boy that left two years ago. You’ve grown up a lot. I proud of you.”

“I didn’t mean to leave…” Sora mumbled quietly. “It’s just…”

“I know, things happen, right?” his mother interjected. Sora looked neurally at his mother. The same words used to describe his own father’s death. “Kairi told me a little of what happened when she came back about two-half years ago. Something about how you and Riku were off saving the world.” She cupped his cheek. “If you came back, that means you succeeded right?”

“I hope.” was Sora’s simple answer. He honestly wasn’t sure if everything was really over.

THe woman pulled Sora’s head towards her and gave him a gentle kiss on the head. She took a deep breath, smelling the tinged smell of her son’s hair. He was really home. Her son, the one who had disappeared so long ago, was home. She pulled back, dabbing at a tear in eyes with her apron. The two exchanged glances and the woman clasped her hands together.

“Well, let’s go inside. I’m just making lunch...and probably dinner.” She told his son. She stood up, brushing her invisible dust off her dress. Then she winked at him. “Don’t be a stranger.”

She was about to take a step inside when Sora grabbed her arm as she stood up. “Wait! Mom, I-”

The brown-haired woman looked curiously at him. He lifted up his other hand, which held a bouquet of the most beautiful clump of flowers she had ever seen. She took the bundle carefully in her hands, as if it was made of glass. The colors and the sweet scent reminded her a time where a certain someone had given these to her during her college years. She looked up at Sora who was giving an uneasy smile. The brunette lady chuckled to herself. Like father like son.

“Thank you, Sora.” She said sweetly. She stood on her toes, patting her son’s head, just like she used to every time he gave her a present.  “They’re very lovely.”


	2. Never Goodbye, See You Soon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Say goodbye, Sora.

She peeked into her son’s room and was relieved when she saw him crumpled on his now too-small bed. His sheets were tussled around and his room was still the dirty mess it was over the years. With the quiet footsteps only gained as a mother, she entered the room and picked up some of the items on the floor so Sora wouldn’t trip over them when he woke up. As she approached the bed, an assortment of toys and clothes in her arms, she watched the sleeping figure breathe gently in the still air. The only sounds were the ocean lapping gently by the shore a bit a ways.

It was truly a good feeling to see her son again after such a long time. Although she had wanted things to go back the way things were before his disappearance, she knew that it wasn’t the same. Sora was different now. Of course, he was still her lovable goofy son, but there was a sense of determination now permanently plastered into his eyes. He had a warrior’s glare now, which only meant he had seen things she had hoped that she would never have to face. Although he spent time at home, helping her around the house and telling her about his adventure, she would often catch him looking out the window and staring out into the ocean and sky. Other times, he would be off with Riku and Kairi. The trio have grown much closer, she noticed. She silently wondered if Sora had found a girlfriend in Kairi yet. She smiled to herself. A cheeky thing mothers always think about.

Another thing is that she noticed he had become much more mellow and obedient. In the past, Sora used to give her grief about almost everything. From cleaning up his room or washing the dishes to doing homework; he would bargain with her for almost anything. Now instead of telling him what to do, he would offer to help her and do things around the house no questions asked. Of course he still neglected to clean his room as much, she had noticed that it was slightly cleaner than it was before. Sometimes, Sora would tell her about her adventures, but there were some occasions where he trailed off or seemed to brush over some facts. He was hiding some things from her. She had eyed him carefully and he said that he’d tell her some other time. Something had happened during the two years he had been gone. There were some physical changes too. Not all the changes were personality changes.

Sora had out-grown her heightwise, spouting at least a half-head or so taller than her now. It was weird looking up at him when she was so used to looking down or looking at an eye-level at him. It also looked like he had beefed up a bit. He looked and was much stronger than he was. During a grocery trip last week, he had managed to stop a car that wasn’t braked properly rolling down a hill by himself. He had stopped it long enough for the owner of the car to run over and turn on the brake. It was scary seeing her son rise up to such a challenge, but she had gained a new idea that Sora was now much more capable than she first thought. However, he wasn’t any buffer than how Riku turned out. Riku’s mother had nearly fallen over heels when she came over two weeks ago, talking about how tall and different Riku had looked. She said that she opted that Riku have a haircut to get the ridiculous long hair out the way. Sora and Kairi had laughed a while when he had returned from the barber shop one day with his hair all neat and short.

Of course, the scars and marks from his adventure did not escape the mother’s eye. She had noticed the subtle nicks and scars along his body when he did things. One time when he was bending over to pick up a potted plant, he noticed an old scar on his waist, twisting up in what looked like a painful spiral up his chest. Another time, she noticed that his pinky finger looked slightly singed, a little darker in complexion than the rest of his body. When he yawned, she noticed that one of his teeth was slightly chipped and there was a cut on his lip that wasn’t there before. She couldn’t lie to herself about this matter. She knew that Sora had gotten hurt in his journey. Although it hurt and pained her to see her son in this way, there was nothing she could’ve done about it. Try as she might, she couldn’t stand a chance against those creatures and people Sora had to challenge. If she did, the woman would most likely get in the way and put Sora in more danger. The fact that he managed to return in one piece was enough for her.

Sora shifted in his sleep and he licked his lips. A sign that he was going to wake up. She took the items in her arms and put them into neat little piles near the side of the room for either her or Sora to put away later.

“Mom?” The teen mumbled as he sat up. He ran a hand through his hair and yawned. “What are you doing?”

“Just moving some stuff around so you don’t trip over them.” She told him as she came to sit on his bed nearby him “You clean the whole house, except your own room.” She put a hand to her head in mock desperation. “What am I going to do with you?”

Sora gave a crooked smile. “I guess that still hasn’t changed.” he replied.

“So, what are you going to do today, honey?” The woman asked her soon. Sora tilted his head, seeming to be deep in thought.

“Riku and Kairi want to hang out on the island today.” He blinked. “Is that okay with you?”

“You don’t have to ask every time if you can go out, Sora.” She told him. “You’re always welcome to go back to the play islands like you did when you were younger.” She clutched her hands tightly. “As long as you come back home, okay?”

The brunette teen noticed this and nodded. “Okay, mom.”

The woman’s eyes softened. “Now wash up. Breakfast is almost ready.” She stood up. “It wouldn’t hurt to be there early.”

-~*~-

When Sora came home in the late afternoon, the woman knew something was wrong. He looked on edge and his thoughts were in turmoil. The young teen kept staring out into space, thinking about something very hard. He seemed aloof and somewhat. The mother had an inkling of what he was so upset about and she was scared to find out what he was worried about. For about a three weeks, she and her son were doing this rhythmic routine. On the weekdays she would go to work at the Charity Center. Sometimes Sora would tag along or he would hang out with his friends. Either way, they would be home by early evening and they would spend the evening together. She didn’t suggest school to Sora yet, she knew that he was way too busy to be doing petty things like school. Even Sora’s mother didn’t remember even half the stuff she learned in school.

However, there was a tender fragility in the air. They both sensed this. That this tranquil peace wasn’t meant to last for very long. The idea of saying goodbye to her son again after so long was painful, but when she saw the look in his eyes today, she knew she couldn’t keep him here forever. She compared him to a caged bird, yearning for it’s freedom in the skies. As much as she wanted to cage up the bird and lock him away, after he had been gone so long, she couldn’t do it. It was written in his destiny. So she decided to address this matter before she lost the courage to ask him.

“Sora, what’s wrong?” she asked when he had finished his dinner.

“Nothing’s wrong.” he answered rather quickly.

The woman sighed tiredly. “You can’t lie to me, Sora, I’m your mother.” Then she gave a half-hearted smile. “You were always a terrible liar.”

Sora looked down and seemed to be contemplating this very heavily. The mother knew that this was coming, but it still hurt to hear it.

“I have to go again.” Sora replied remorsefully. “Kairi found a message from the King and…”

His mother cut her off. “When will you be leaving?”

Sora looked up at his mother, who had a tired saddening look on her face. He bit his lip as he fought the urge to cry.

“You’re let me go?” Sora squeaked. His voice was constricted by the coming of tears.

“I don’t think I can keep you here forever.” The brown-haired mother admitted. “I know it’s important.”

“But aren’t you afraid that I won’t come back this time?” Sora replied, his voice strained. There was a look of desperation in his eyes.

The woman closed her eyes before opening them again a moment later, her eyes glistening with tears. “It’s painful to say goodbye, especially since I want you to stay.” She looked at Sora, her son, who was close to sobbing. “But it’s more painful for me to ask you to stay when I know that you need to go.”

Sora couldn’t stop the tears from falling from his face. After all his hardship his mother had gone through alone. She had told him about the year where she had forgotten him. The woman had described it as a time where she had felt lost and when she did remember, she had broken down crying. She didn’t really say much on the matter, but when he had asked Riku’s parents, they had told him how depressed his mother was after she remembered. They had to come over and force her to eat, less she starve to death. He, her son, hadn’t been there for her. Yet despite this, she was willing to let him go again; even if she knew that it might be a long time before he did. He might not even come back at all. He wanted to wish that he could stay home, just a bit longer, but he knew he couldn’t. He was just prolonging the inevitable.

He felt warm arms pull him into a hug. His mother had pulled a chair next to him and had pulled him into a warm hug. Sora blinked away the tears as his mother brought him closer to her. He suddenly felt very small. It was like time he had returned from school for his mother to reveal that his father had passed away. That itself was downright terrible to hear. This-This however,  was so much more painful. He couldn’t make himself leave his mother again.

“There are things we don’t want to happen.” His mother told him quietly. “But, we have to accept them. Things we don’t really want to learn, but we have to.” Then she tilted Sora’s head so she look at him more clearly. “People we can’t live without.” She leaned over and kissed Sora on the head and hugged him close to her chest. “But we have to.”

Sora reached his hand out to the table to grab the napkin he had seen earlier. He rubbed his face raw with the fabric, trying to scrub the tears violently away from his face.

“I know that, mom.” He replied after a while. “I just want to know why we have to.”

She looked at him sympathetically. “We all do.”

-~*~-

Sora stared across the ocean from his patio. It was the day. King Mickey and the Gummi Ship should be arriving early in the afternoon. He had already packed up his things in a small satchel. He had donned his traveling attire. Despite the excitement of what is to come, there was a small ribbon tying him down to the ground, telling him to stay home. It was dawn, he and Riku should be meeting up at the play island in the morning. Kairi wouldn’t be coming, unfortunately, it was just him and Riku. Sora had wanted to spend the morning with his mother, but he knew that he and Riku still needed to work a few things out privately before they leave.

His mother soon came from the door, holding a plate of cookies and a glass of juice. Sora looked at his mother observantly as she put the cookies and the glass on the table before coming to sit next on a cushioned lounge chair. On the table, was the vase with the flowers he had picked earlier. Despite it being almost a month already, the island flowers had remained it’s beautiful self. It was probably the potions he kept pouring into the jar when his mother wasn’t looking. After his mother snuggled into the chair, she took a cookie herself and nibbled it absent-mindedly, watching the sun peek over the ocean.

“I can’t just leave you here alone.” Sora said to his mother suddenly. He didn’t really mean it as much as he did a week ago when he had told his mother he had to leave. Just wished that maybe that if he did say so, that somehow the wish be granted.

His mother stopped nibbling and she turned to look at him. “Don’t be silly. I’ll be fine, Sora.” She said absentmindedly. “I have so many memories if you, it’s impossible not to be lonely.” Then she shrugged. “Kairi told me she’d come visit often.”

“You forgot me for a year though.” Sora pointed out solemnly.

“True, but that was a really special circumstance. In truth, you know I would never forget you.” His mother smiled at him cheekily. She took a nibble out of her cookie.

Sora looked away.

“I’m going to miss you, mom.” Sora said after a while. “I promise I’ll come back home.”

“If you don’t, I’ll have to bring you home myself.” she replied jokingly, although there was a hint of seriousness in her tone. Sora chuckled, smiling to himself.

“Mom, you’ll…” Sora trailed off. The woman looked at him expectantly and he cleared his throat. “You’ll be waiting for me right, mom?” He coughed a bit. “When I come back, you’ll be right here right?”

“I always will.” She replied almost immediately. “Don’t think for a second that I won’t.” She took a rather large bite of the cookie and chewed slowly. “You’re going to see and do wonderful things, I’m sure of it.” She swallowed. “And don’t let me hold you back. If I was able to leave and go on this great adventure and save the worlds, I would go too.” She looked at him sincerely. “Give this Xenaheart-guy a piece of my mind too, okay?”

“His name is Xehanort, mom.” corrected Sora with a laugh. “I’ll be sure to tell him my mom sent her regards.”

The two laughed quietly together. By then the sun had already begun it’s slow climb into the sky. It was going to be morning soon, which meant he didn’t have much time left. Sora grabbed a cookie and quickly snapped it up in his mouth. His mother sent him a look that said ‘Don’t eat so fast’. Sora just smiled and hesitantly grabbed the juice and taking a big gulp. After the third cookie, Sora realized the glass of juice was empty. There was only two cookies left on the plate and he decided to leave them for his mother. He rubbed his gloves on his face, wiping the crumbs away.

He hesitantly stood up, watching his mother for a reaction. Instead she cozied down on the cushioned lawn chair, looking out into the ocean. Half a cookie in her hand as fiddled with her sleeve absent-mindedly.

“Mom, I have to go now.” Sora said in a small voice.

A small silence.

“I know.” She replied in a similar tone. “Goodbye, sweetie. I’ll be waiting for you to come back home.”

Sora shook his head. “Someone told me ‘Never say goodbye, because that means going away and going away means forgetting’. You said yourself you’re not forgetting me anytime soon.” Then in a stronger, firmer voice, he said these next words. “I’ll see you soon, mom.”

His mother broke into a laugh. She smirked at him and winked, as if to say ‘You got me’. She scrunched up the last of the cookie in her mouth and brushed them against each other to get rid of the crumb and chocolate. Then with one of her hands, she made a ‘shooing’ gesture.

“Off you go then, before our goodbye gets any longer than it should be.” His mother said blatantly. Nodding, Sora took picked up the satchel he was bringing with him and took a step out onto the lawn, towards the ocean, towards a new adventure.

“See you soon, Sora.” The brunette heard his mother say from the lawn chair.

Sora wanted to turn back and give one final hug or look back or something, but he knew that if he turned back now, he would lose the determination to leave. So instead he raised his fist in the air and punched upward, which is gesture he was sure his mother saw.

And with that, Sora severed the ribbon that grounded him and the caged bird flew away; knowing very well that he’ll return back to the nest someday.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be adding a picture to promote this picture later, but I'm a little busy now :D So how'd you like this FanFic? Is it good? Remember to drop in a comment or something, I want to know how my written works did :3 Also made a small nudge to IGN's "ever clever" pronunciation of Xehanort's name, thanks to Cynical on TheGamersJoint.
> 
> I know I may have messed up the time a bit in the Kingdom Hearts timeline, but I decided that KH1+CoM is roughly one year and KH2 is about one year too. Sora's about 16 years old by this story's time. Sora's mom is probably in her early forties.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! A lil' ending note. Sora's mom remains unnamed because she has never been canonically named. I don't feel like I can really give her a name and have not become too OCish. I wanted to make this seem as canon and realistic as I possibly could. I also hope I didn't make Sora a crybaby, but I'm sure his mother is a very emotional thing he's about. I took experiences and conversations with my own mother to make most of the dialogue. I'm sorry if it doesn't live up to your expectations, I really tried my best. I'm also uploading another chapter right after I upload this one, relating to Sora leaving again for KH3D. I wanted to make this a one shot, but the break at one point just felt like another chapter felt more epilogue-like and didn't relate much to the summary I put up. I decided to split it up as so and upload them back-to-back. So that means when you read this, you'll can read the epilogue-ish chapter right after this! :D


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